Sunday Books and Culture
Frankenstein, and Gustav Klimt, in Christopher Moore’s “Anima Rising”; Ashley Riggleson recommends Zoe Rankin’s debut thriller “The Vanishing Place.”
ANIMA RISING
By Christopher Moore
Published by William Morrow (May 13, 2025)
Hardcover $24.00
Audiobook $14.95
Reviewed by Drew Gallagher
As we approach the end of a tumultuous 2025, it may be difficult to find joy in what this year has wrought. There was a popular Facebook post that summed up 2025 perfectly when the clocks fell back — getting an extra hour in 2025 is like getting a Yoko Ono bonus track.
Here at the Advance, however, we strive to find good where we can, and whenever Christopher Moore releases a new book into the world, it offers a glimmer of hope and a reason to celebrate and love thy fellow man. Moore’s 19th novel, Anima Rising, gave readers such a reason as noted previously in the Advance.
For those unfamiliar with Moore’s uniquely entertaining style of writing, this novel may not serve as the best introduction, but for anyone who likes to laugh and always wondered why no one ever contemplated the obvious ties between Frankenstein, Gustav Klimt, and Dr. Freud in 1911 Vienna, here is the novel you have been long awaiting. There is nudity, there is raising of the undead, and there is a lovable dog who can turn into a wolf when angered. It’s essentially Netflix in book form and a lot cheaper.
The story focuses on Klimt who had a troubling tendency to sleep with the women whom he paid to pose for his paintings. These models turn out to be the heroes of Anima Rising though and are able to save white men of power from themselves, which history has shown can be a Sisyphean task. The women are attractive and clever, and Moore gives them a depth that was never revealed in Klimt’s renderings. Plus, they can keep the lovable dog from tearing unwanted visitors into a kibble and bits.
There is also a dash of the afterlife and the underworld and an amalgam of world religious symbols that periodically puncture the narrative. There is a lot to unpack, and if you have a passing familiarity with the original Frankenstein story and Karl Jung then all the better, but these are not necessary tools to enjoy the hell out of this book. Fasten your seat belt, keep your hands inside the car, and forget the tumult of 2025 for a descent into the comic brilliance that is Christopher Moore.
Drew Gallagher is a freelance writer residing in Fredericksburg, Virginia. He is the second-most-prolific book reviewer and first video book reviewer in the 136-year history of the Free Lance-Star Newspaper. He aspires to be the second-most-prolific book reviewer in the history of FXBG Advance and the first Secretary of Levity for the Commonwealth of Virginia.
THE VANISHING PLACE
By Zoe Rankin
Published by Berkley (September 16, 2025)
Paperback $17.57
Audiobook $14.99
Reviewed by Ashley Riggleson
Initially, I was not sure that I would love Zoe Rankin’s debut novel, The Vanishing Place. This story, which follows a young woman called Effie as she reckons with the trauma of an isolated and abusive childhood in the New Zealand bush, has drawn comparisons to Barbara Kingsolver work and Delia Owens’ novel, Where the Crawdads Sing. As such, it is clear that The Vanishing Place has big shoes to fill, and I feared the novel was overhyped. But Rankin’s novel somehow lives up to that description while simultaneously bringing something new to the table. And if you are looking for a book that will swallow you whole, keep your attention, and break your heart, The Vanishing Place will not disappoint.
The Vanishing Place follows a young woman called Effie who, as an adult, faces an emergency situation while stranded on a mountain in Scotland. This event triggers memories of her tumultuous and violent New Zealand childhood. Effie soon learns that a young child, with whom she bears a striking resemblance, has appeared from out of the New Zealand bush unaccompanied. The child tells authorities that her name is Anya but refuses to answer further questions. When Effie meets Anya, though, it is obvious that the two are related. Answers about who Anya is and how she got to be there, however, are not as apparent. The Vanishing Place becomes a braided narrative of multiple timelines that tells Effie’s story from her childhood until her escape from New Zealand, as well as the tale of her eventual return to that troubled place and the reckoning she faces as she comes to terms with her past and discovers that there are more sinister things afoot than even she could have guessed.
Accordingly, this novel is an instantly compelling read, and Rankin’s sense of atmosphere, especially in regard to the novel’s wild and dangerous places, is on point.
Effie and Anya are indelible characters whose fates readers will genuinely care to know. And while the plot takes some unexpected turns that some readers may find unrealistic, many readers will also find that The Vanishing Place is literally “unputdownable.” Trigger warnings abound for this novel, and potential readers should be aware that Rankin often shows us the depravity that human nature has to offer. But readers who love shows like Criminal Minds will also love this pulse-pounding and dark novel that literally made my heart race.
Here it might be worth pointing out that this novel, for all its terrors, also focuses on hope, healing, and love. These contrasting elements. Rankin shows us, can coexist with each other and form an elaborate tapestry.
The Vanishing Place is, then, not a run of the mill thriller meant to be gobbled up and just as quickly forgotten. Instead, it is a story that is thrilling AND affecting, a novel that is, in the end,
Ashley Riggleson is a free-lance book reviewer from Rappahannock County. When she is not reading or writing book reviews, she can usually be found playing with her pets, listening to podcasts, or watching television with friends and family.
Local Obituaries
To view local obituaries or to send a note to family and loved ones, please visit the link that follows.
Support Award-winning, Locally Focused Journalism
The FXBG Advance cuts through the talking points to deliver both incisive and informative news about the issues, people, and organizations that daily affect your life. And we do it in a multi-partisan format that has no equal in this region. Over the past year, our reporting was:
First to break the story of Stafford Board of Supervisors dismissing a citizen library board member for “misconduct,” without informing the citizen or explaining what the person allegedly did wrong.
First to explain falling water levels in the Rappahannock Canal.
First to detail controversial traffic numbers submitted by Stafford staff on the Buc-ee’s project
Our media group also offers the most-extensive election coverage in the region and regular columnists like:
And our newsroom is led by the most-experienced and most-awarded journalists in the region — Adele Uphaus (Managing Editor and multiple VPA award-winner) and Martin Davis (Editor-in-Chief, 2022 Opinion Writer of the Year in Virginia and more than 25 years reporting from around the country and the world).
For just $8 a month, you can help support top-flight journalism that puts people over policies.
Your contributions 100% support our journalists.
Help us as we continue to grow!
This article is published under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND. It can be distributed for noncommercial purposes and must include the following: “Published with permission by FXBG Advance.”